President of the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB), Faruque Ahmed, stated on Saturday, August 24, that following the conclusion of the current first Test match between Pakistan and Bangladesh in Rawalpindi, the premier cricket organization in Bangladesh will make a determination regarding the future of legendary all-rounder and former captain Shakib Al Hasan.
On August 22, a murder charge was filed in Bangladesh naming 37-year-old Shakib. Following the accusation, a lawyer for Bangladesh’s Supreme Court reportedly issued a formal letter to the BCB on Saturday requesting Shakib’s immediate expulsion from all “forms” of cricket, according to a report in Cricbuzz.
According to the notice, Shakib is ineligible to play for the national team under ICC rules since he has been mentioned in a case. The notification further requested that Shakib be brought back to Bangladesh as quickly as possible so that the murder probe could proceed.
Reporters in Bangladesh were informed by Faruque, who assumed leadership of BCB earlier this month, that the board had not yet received the legal notification. However, he stated that before the second Test against Pakistan, which is scheduled to begin in Rawalpindi on August 30, BCB would make a decision regarding Shakib.
“Let me say about Shakib. A case has been lodged. We are yet to get any legal notice. FIR (first information letter) was given in the case, and later there will be an investigation, and following that, the case will move in one direction or the other,” Faruque told reporters.
“Look, now we are playing a Test match, and it is very good news that we have played well on the fourth day. Tomorrow is the fifth day, the deciding day of the Test, and I think at this point, we haven’t thought about taking a stance. After tomorrow, once the game is over, we will sit and take a decision. By this time, we will also be able to say something about the legal notice, as we will have received it by that time,” he added.
“Look, the FIR is just the first information letter, and they are yet to claim any charge as far as I know, so before that, it is difficult to take a decision. The relationship between BCB and Shakib Al Hasan is like a player and an employer, according to the contract. After tomorrow, we can think exactly after getting the legal notice and based on that. I cannot withdraw him from the middle of the Test match,” he said.
“The second Test match is from August 30, so there is a gap between the games. During this period, we can think about what can be done in this regard,” he added.
